There's a lot of potential for you to be creative with this and make a huge difference in their business.

In addition to the prize money, my goal is that you have a good time working on this project and end up with a design you'll be proud to have in your portfolio.

For my part, I'll be here every step of the way to give you feedback and guidance on your designs.

I imagine it's a drag to slave over a design and have it ignored by the contest holder. That won't happen here.

So all I ask is that you read the specifcation carefully, do your best work - and in exchange I'll provide fast and frequent feedback to make your job easier.

I just discovered you guys here at 99designs.com and I'm excited because my company has regular work and I'm hoping to return here often if this project goes well.

Tell us a bit about who you are and the people you reach

The people you're designing this site for for have a problem.

They're in the middle of a home improvement project and are looking for one of two things:

1. To get ideas - For example, they are remodeling their kitchen but want to check out different counter tops and cabinets before making a decision.

In the past they would have to drive all over the city to go do different showrooms. With homeshow daily they can visit one location and see the work from several contractors in one place, saving them time, gas and energy.

2. Find a Contractor they can trust to do the work - The other problem is finding a contractor who won't rip them off.

They are ready to start but need bids from contractors and are concerned that the person they hire won't do the job right. We have hundreds of contractors in each location and use strict screening procedures that ensure our exhibitors are reliable and will get the job done.

These are upper middle class people looking for quality products to improve their home.

This not a "do it yourself" website targeted to guys with tool belts.

Traffic is mostly women, with maybe 30% men.

=> The NUMBER ONE GOAL of the design is to encourage visitors to fill out our bid request form.

Everything else is secondary.

The number 2 goal on the home page is to encourage people to learn more about Homeshow Daily and then visit a showroom.

Requirements

I need design concepts and ideas for the home page:

We want...

-> Open layouts with a clear path to follow for the visitor. Not hundreds of little boxes.

-> Very clearly defined "next actions" for the visitor.

-> "Here's how this works, 1 -2 -3" on the home page is a strong guiding principle here.